Finance Minister T Harish Rao today said that the state government is offering all support to develop fishermen financially and socially.
Harish said that the government plans to purchase fish products from cooperative societies directly and help benefit the fishermen. For this we plan to procure the same through Fisheries Federation and help the fishermen he said.
The Minister who is camping in the Karimnagar district ahead of the Huzurabad by-poll has participated in some development programs in the segment. He welcomed former Chairman of Karim Nagar fisheries corporation, P Lakshman into the TRS fold at a program in the district. Speaking on the occasion he said that KCR is for fishermen’s development.
For all community professions, the government has come up with new schemes and funds. With this the professional communities will develop financially and socially, he said. The Minister said that fishermen are getting benefits now with new schemes that increased its production. Harish Rao claimed that the state has witnessed significant growth in fish production with 3.49 lakh tons in 2020-21 from the previous 1.97 lakh tons in 2016-17. He attributed this to the fish program by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao in the state as it helps the fishermen get benefits.
ALSO READ: State surpasses Centre in financial growth: Harish Rao
The Minister said that the Telangana now exports the fish to other states by using 60 percent production in the state and the rest to other states. He said that about 21 percent of fish from our state is being exported to West Bengal, 19 percent to Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and other states.
However, he expressed concern that middlemen are taking the benefits from the fishermen. So to find out a solution we plan to directly purchase the fish products from the fishermen and give them more benefits, he said. Through fisheries cooperative societies the government will purchase the fish by fisheries federation and avoid middlemen he said
SOURCE: NSS
